A member of the Central Highlands Cluster Ministry 26 th November- Christ the King We acknowledge the Jaara Jaara people, of the Woi wurrung and Dja Dja Wurrung language groups, the custodians of this land where we gather. We pay our respects to their elders past and present and pray for reconciliation.
GATHERING IN GOD S NAME Sentence for the day O shout to the Lord in triumph all the earth. Serve the Lord with gladness and come before his face with songs of joy. Psalm 100.1 Gathering Hymn 585 I heard the Voice The Lord be with you. And also with you The Prayer of preparation (page 119 of the prayer book) Almighty God The Shema (page 120 of the prayer book) Hear, O Israel. The Confession and absolution (page 120 of the prayer book) Let us confess our sins in penitence and faith, confident in God s forgiveness. Merciful God Glory to God in the highest The Gloria (page 121 of the prayer book)
Let us pray our prayer for the week God of power and love, who raised your Son Jesus from death to life, resplendent in glory to rule over all creation: free the world to rejoice in his peace, to glory in his justice, and to live in his love. Unite the human race in Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen. MINISTRY OF THE WORD A reading from the book of Ezekiel chapter 34 verses 11-16 and 20-24 For thus says the Lord GOD: I myself will search for my sheep, and will seek them out. As shepherds seek out their flocks when they are among their scattered sheep, so I will seek out my sheep. I will rescue them from all the places to which they have been scattered on a day of clouds and thick darkness. I will bring them out from the peoples and gather them from the countries, and will bring them into their own land; and I will feed them on the mountains of Israel, by the watercourses, and in all the inhabited parts of the land. I will feed them with good pasture, and the mountain heights of Israel shall be their pasture; there they shall lie down in good grazing land, and they shall feed on rich pasture on the mountains of Israel. I myself will be the shepherd of my sheep, and I will make them lie down, says the Lord GOD. I will seek the lost, and I will bring back the strayed, and I will bind up the injured, and I will strengthen the weak, but the fat and the strong I will destroy. I will feed them with justice. Therefore, thus says the Lord GOD to them: I myself will judge between the fat sheep and the lean sheep. Because you pushed with flank and shoulder, and butted at all the weak animals with your horns until you scattered them far and wide, I will save my flock, and they shall no longer be ravaged; and I will judge between sheep and sheep.
I will set up over them one shepherd, my servant David, and he shall feed them: he shall feed them and be their shepherd. And I, the LORD, will be their God, and my servant David shall be prince among them; I, the LORD, have spoken. For the word of the Lord thanks be to God Psalm 100 O shout to the Lord in triumph, all the earth: serve the Lord with gladness, and come before his face with songs of joy. Know that the Lord he is God: it is he who has made us and we are his; we are his people and the sheep of his pasture. Come into his gates with thanksgiving, and into his courts with praise: give thanks to him, and bless his holy name. For the Lord is good, his loving mercy is for ever: his faithfulness throughout all generations. A reading from Paul s letter to the Ephesians chapter 1 verses 15 23 I have heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love toward all the saints, and for this reason I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. I pray that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation as you come to know him, so that, with the eyes of your heart enlightened, you may know what is the hope to which he has called you, what are the riches of his glorious inheritance among the saints, and what is the immeasurable greatness of his power for us who believe,
according to the working of his great power. God put this power to work in Christ when he raised him from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the age to come. And he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all. For the word of the Lord thanks be to God Gradual Hymn 430 Your words to me Alleluia Alleluia Glory to you O word of God, King of endless glory Alleluia The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, according to Matthew chapter 25 beginning at the 31 st verse Glory to you Lord Jesus Christ When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats, and he will put the sheep at his right hand and the goats at the left. Then the king will say to those at his right hand, Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you gave me clothing, I was sick and you took care of me, I was in prison and you visited me. Then the righteous will answer him, Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry and gave you food, or thirsty and gave you something to drink? And when was it that we saw you a stranger and welcomed you, or naked and gave you clothing? And when was it that
we saw you sick or in prison and visited you? And the king will answer them, Truly I tell you, just as you did it to one of the least of these who are members of my family, you did it to me. Then he will say to those at his left hand, You that are accursed, depart from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels; for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not give me clothing, sick and in prison and you did not visit me. Then they also will answer, Lord, when was it that we saw you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not take care of you? Then he will answer them, Truly I tell you, just as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me. And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life. For the Gospel of the Lord praise to you, Lord Jesus Christ The Sermon The affirmation of faith (page 123 of the prayer book) The Prayers of the People We are the body of Christ His Spirit is with us. The Greeting of Peace The peace of the Lord be always with you. And also with you. Offertory Hymn 659 The Lord s my shepherd *a collection to assist the mission of God in this parish will be taken up during this hymn
Blessed are you..(we give thanks for the bread and wine) Blessed be God forever Blessed are you..(we give thanks for money and food offerings) Blessed be God forever THE GREAT THANKSGIVING.for ever praising you and singing Holy, holy, holy Lord God of power and might, Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the Highest Blessed is he who comes in the Lord s name Hosanna in the Highest We say together Christ has died Christ is risen Christ will come again in songs of never ending praise Blessing and honour and glory and power are yours for ever and ever. Amen With our hearts set on the kingdom and our hands open to serve, we pray as Jesus taught us
Our Father in heaven hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins, as we forgive those who sin against us. Save us from the time of trial and deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours now and for ever. Amen. The Sending out of God s people God our creator, you feed your children with the true manna, the living bread from heaven: let this holy food sustain us through our earthly pilgrimage until we come to that place where hunger and thirst are no more; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Most loving God... you send us into the world you love. Give us grace to go thankfully and with courage in the power of your Spirit. Final Hymn 545 Shout for joy The Blessing and Dismissal The Notices The peace of God which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. In the name of Christ.
***some thoughts from Rev. Mel It s Thursday night as I write this and I ve just returned home from the induction of Rev d Tracey Wolsley into the parish of St Mary s Kangaroo Flat. It was a lovely celebration of her ministry and of the parish, and there was a great gathering of the clergy from the diocese to support both Tracey and the parish on this special day. It was particularly lovely for me to sit in that church as it is two years ago next week that myself and Neil were ordained Deacons there. I was reflecting, as I drove home, on the great joy that the last two years have been for me as I have gotten to know you all, as well as those in our community who haven t quite made it into the church yet. I read an article during the week about the importance of holding something back of yourself in ministry, of not allowing yourself to be fully known by the people in the congregation. Well I m not convinced that that is the way that we should be together as the body of Christ I certainly know that I am not the sort of person who would be able to do that anyway! It made me think of the way that Saint Paul was so open about his affection for the people to whom he had ministered. Saint Paul always, with the exception possibly of the letter to the Galatians, begins his letters in joy and love and by giving thanks for the community where he has ministered. In today s reading he says I do not cease to give thanks for you as I remember you in my prayers. As I come to this two year anniversary or my ministry, I want to say that I do indeed thank God for you, and for the great joy and privilege of being your priest. I hope you enjoy this final week of the church year. Blessings and thanks Mel
************************** Pew Bulletin Every Week Tuesday Conversations at the rectory from 7pm Christian Meditation at St Mary s from 5:30pm Geomorphic Moods An exhibition of photography, paintings and prints by our own Robyn Leeder and colleagues, opens on December 2 nd at 2pm in the Norma Richardson Hall. The exhibition will run until the 10 th of December contact robynleedersart@gamil.com for more details. Christmas flowers Would you like to make a contribution towards the cost of flowers for decorating St Mary s at Christmas? You can donate in memory of a loved one, or just because you like flowers. Donations can be passed to Rev. Mel. News from the Guilds St Mary s Guild: The Guild still require assistance for the street stall once a month ladies and gentlemen are invited to volunteer for one hour to sell goodies. St George s Guild: Thanks to everyone who assisted and attended the flower and garden show in Trentham. What a great joy to have the community come together in way that celebrates the beauty of nature! Macedon Ranges Toy Shop Once again this advent, we will be collecting toys for the Macedon Ranges Toy Shop. When our Christmas tree goes up next week you can leave your donations underneath it.
The need is particularly high for teenagers who would be grateful for gift vouchers as well as gifts. A guide to the value of gifts is approx. $20 Parish Diary Dates: Date Event 25.11.17 Trentham flower show 3.12.17 Beginning of Advent 17.12.17 TCCC carols in Trentham 22.12.17 Carols at St Mary's Giving for the year Budget @47/52 Actual to date Variance B/(W) $47,000.00 $46,531.50 ($468.50) Our giving is really close to our target budget this year an extraordinary effort considering all of the extra restoration expenses and donations we have had this year. If you would like to utilise direct debit giving our BSB is 633 000 and account is 1498 24906. Reference your name and offertory. Intercessions our prayers are asked for: John, Sam, Jim, Andrea, Alison, Ethan, Kirsten, Carole, Wendy, Judy, Jonathan, Jeanette, Susie, Trevor, Rudi, Trish, Sheila, Hugh, Tim, Joshua and family, Alan, Aldyth, Benjamin, Faye, Lynne and Max. Bishop Andrew s Final Service Please pray for Bishop Andrew and Jan as they prepare for the service where Bishop Andrew will lay up his staff on December 2 nd. Please continue to pray for the Bishopric Electoral Board as they continue their work to find us a new Bishop.
Birthdays! On Wednesday we celebrate Rauri Barker and Ron White and on Thursday Ian Hansford On Wednesday it is also two years since Rev Mel and Rev Neil were made Deacons. Years Mind and those who have died recently On Thursday, St Andrew s Day, we remember Joyce Bedson. Next week s readings Advent 1 Isaiah 64.1-9 Ps 80.1-7, 17-19 1 Corinthians 1.1-9 Mark 13.24-37 PO Box 699, Woodend, VIC 3442 www.woodendanglican.org.au Priest: Rev d Melissa Clark 0411 722 718 Wardens: Derek 0417 252 222; John 5424 1127 Hon Priests: Rev d Charles Sherlock 0423 020 699 and Rev d Wendy Hudson 0419 570 740 www.facebook.com/woodendanglican/